Friday, 7 March 2014

Vegan Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes - Gluten Free, Child Friendly

I guess Sloppy Joes aren't something you find in the UK all that often, but it's something I came to love during my many childhood trips to the US. This is my vegan lentil based version which is perfect to make in the slow cooker. It's great to be able to set it and forget about it until dinner time. I usually cook it for about 8 hours on low, but all slow cooker heat settings are differant - I've had one before where warm was the equivalent of low - you'll know your slow cooker best.

Ingredients

2 drained cans of water packed green lentils (or about 1 cup of dry green lentils cooked on the hob for 30 mins)

1 large white chopped onion

1/2 cup of roasted red peppers (from a jar, water packed)

1 tin chopped tomatoes

3 TBSP tomato purée

3 minced garlic cloves

1 TSP Dijon mustard

1 Tsp blackstrap molasses (or treacle)

1/2 Tsp mixed herbs

1/2 Tsp chilli flakes

1/2 Tsp cumin

1/2 Tsp smoked paprika

1/2 Tsp oregano

1/2 cup water

Place everything in your slow cooker and give it a good stir so that all the herbs and spices are evenly distributed. Set your slow cooker for desired cooking time - it's approx 8 hours on low or 3/4 hours on high, but your slow cooker might vary.

I normally serve them with home made whole grain spelt rolls, but you could use whatever you fancy. As these are low fat and oil free I serve the rolls with vegan margarine for my toddler.